Lesson plan

RefSeq

The Reference Sequence (RefSeq) database is an open access, annotated and curated collection of publicly available nucleotide sequences (DNA, RNA) and their protein products. RefSeq was introduced in 2000. This database is built by National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), and, unlike GenBank, provides only a single record for each natural biological molecule (i.e. DNA, RNA or protein) for major organisms ranging from viruses to bacteria to eukaryotes. For each model organism, RefSeq aims to provide separate and linked records for the genomic DNA, the gene transcripts, and the proteins arising from those transcripts. RefSeq is limited to major organisms for which sufficient data are available (121,461 distinct "named" organisms as of July 2022), while GenBank includes sequences for any organism submitted (approximately 504,000 formally described species).

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Article summary

The Reference Sequence (RefSeq) database is an open access, annotated and curated collection of publicly available nucleotide sequences (DNA, RNA) and their protein products. RefSeq was introduced in 2000. This database is built by National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), and, unlike GenBank, provides only a single record for each natural biological molecule (i.e. DNA, RNA or protein) for major organisms ranging from viruses to bacteria to eukaryotes. For each model organism, RefSeq aims to provide separate and linked records for the genomic DNA, the gene transcripts, and the proteins arising from those transcripts. RefSeq is limited to major organisms for which sufficient data are available (121,461 distinct "named" organisms as of July 2022), while GenBank includes sequences for any organism submitted (approximately 504,000 formally described species).

Key claims

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Discussion questions

  1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
  2. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
  3. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.